Today, something was wrong.
When I asked Marlo what he wanted
to play, he didn't answer."
The narrator of this heartwarming and needed book knows how lucky she is to have a friend like Marlo. The two spend their days together, like the same things, and can't imagine being happier than when they are with each other. They like dogs, basketball, funny books, and playing hide-and-seek. When one bit of fun ends, they are happy to move on to another.
It comes as a big surprise when, one day, Marlo doesn't want to play, or listen to jokes, or even talk. Just watching Marlo's body language lets his friend know that something is very wrong. Marlo gets angrier and angrier, without any explanation. Too soon, Marlo's anger is out of control and he disappears. Good friends hang in, despite setbacks. With persistence and a thorough search, Marlo is finally found ... crying and extremely sad. Only then does the audience realize what is causing his sadness. All a friend can do is exactly what happens next.
"I'm sorry, Marlo," I said.
And that's when Marlo
and I cried together.
Because we're best friends,
and that's what best friends do, too."
In this debut picture book, Andrew Arnold captures all emotions clearly and with poignancy. The illustrations exude happiness when readers first meet the two, then explode with the anger and sad feelings that Marlo is experiencing, and finally, with the love and empathy that come from a true friend. Without explanation in the text of the book, readers learn from the detailed images created what has caused this honest response to a heartbreaking loss.
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